Means for and method of delivering molten glass charges to shallow molds



Aug. l, 1933. K, E PElLER 1,92Q-,593

'A NANS FOR AND METHOD 0F DELIYEBING MOLTEN GLASS CHARGES TO SHALLOW MLDS Filed Sept. 25", 1931 Patented Aug. l, 1933 MEANS FOR AND METHOD F HELIVERING MOLTEN GLASS CHARGES T0 SHALLOW MOLDS Karl E. Peiler, West Hartford, Conn., assignor to Hartford-Empire Company, Hartford, Conn., a Corporation of Delaware Application September 25, 1931 Serial No. 565,071

9 Claims.

This invention relates generally to means for and methods of delivering separated charges of molten glass to molds of glass working machinery. More particularly described, the invention is concerned with the delivery of preformed separated charges to shallow molds, such as glass brick molds, the depth of the charge receiving cavities of which is less than a horizontal dimension thereof.

It is now well appreciated in the art to which the invention appertains that mold charges should be preformed to fit as closely as possible the cavities of the molds for which they are intended and that such preformed charges should be delivered to such mold cavities with a minimum of distortion or change of the shape and so that the lcharges in the molds may settle or be forced into contact with the walls of the mold cavities without causing crumpling, rupture, undue stretching or infolding of the skin or enamel which inevitably forms on the molten glass when it is exposed to the influence of any fluid or surface that is cooler than the glass.

Preformed charges obtainable by the use of feeding devices in general use have their major axes vertical, or nearly so. Many satisfactory devices are known for delivering such charges to molds which have cavities formed with their major axes vertical, as for example, to molds in which the charges are to be fabricated into bottles or other articles of hollow glassware. However, all such delivery devices, of which the appli-v cant is aware, are unsatisfactory for use to deliver preformed charges to molds having shallow cavities, the major axes or dimensions of which are substantially horizontal.

' An object of the invention therefore is to provide simple and effective means for delivering pre- 0 formed charges to -molds having cavities formed with their major axes horizontal so that the charges when deposited in the molds will have their major axes substantially coincident with the major axes of the mold cavities and will be accurately centered in said cavities.

A further object of the invention is to improve the art of delivering preformed charges to shallow molds of the character above indicated by receiving a separated preformed mold charge having its major axis or dimension substantially vertical and turning the mold charge during its delivery to the mold cavity so that the major axis or dimension of the mold charge when delivered to the mold cavity will be substantially horizontal 35 and the VI nold charge-will'be deposited in the mold cavity in the position in which it most nearly i-lts such cavity.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description when such description is considered in conjunction with'the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 lis a fragmentary vertical sectional view of mold charge delivery means embodying structural features of the invention and including a charge delivery device or charger, shown With a mold charge therein and in the position at which it has received such charge;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing the mold charger after it has moved from its charge receiving to itsmold-charging position and after it has deposited its charge in the underlying mold;

Fig. 3 is an end. view, partly in section, of the charger and associate parts, the view being taken substantially' along the line 3--3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing a modified form of structure for supporting and operating the charger; and

Fig. 5 is a relatively reduced assembly view, 80 mainly in section, showing the manner in which charge delivery means embodying the invention may be associated with a charge feeder of a well known type of construction.

The practical embodiment of the invention that is shown in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, includes a mold charge delivery receptacle or charger generally indicated at 10 This charger has a cavity 11 closed at one end and preferably provided with flaring Walls at its opposite end. The cavity 11 90 is adapted to receive a separated and preformed mold charge, such as indicated at 12, in- Fig. 1, and to support that mold charge temporarily without causing or permitting any substantial distortion or change of the shape thereof. The walls of the cavity 11 may be lined with a suitable material, such as brush carbon, to minimize, chilling of the glass therein.

-The charger preferably is formed of two cooperative halves, each of which has `a longitudinally divided half portion of the cavity 11 formed therein. The halves of the charger 10 are provided at their upper sides with ears or lugs 13. These ears or lugs have overlapping portions apertured for the reception of a'hinge pin 14, the axis 105 of which is parallel with the axial line of the cavity 11.

The hinge pin 14 is carried by a vertically swingable frame 15. The latter preferably comprises a pair of side bars 16 which are joined at their 110` ends to outer and inner end portions 17 and 18, respectively, of the frame. The hinge pin 14 is shown as being disposed midway between the -side bars 16, the ends of such hinge pin being supported in aligned apertures in the front and rear end portions of the frame and being secured to the frame in any suitable known manner, as by means of a cross pin 19. The halves of the charger thus will be suspended from the frame.

The frame 15 is provided at its rearward end with a downwardly turned attaching portion 20 which is connected pivotally by a horizontal pin 21 With upstanding ears 22 on a support 23. The axes of the pins 14 and 21 are at` right angles with each other.-

The support 23 may be a plate that is adapted for attachment to any fixed frame work or other supporting structure (not shown), whereby the frame 15 and the charger that is suspended therefrom will be supported above a charging station to which a mold 24 on a carrier 25 will be brought at the proper time in a cycle of operations of glass working machinery to which the invention may be applied. The carrier 25 may be a rotating table, or any other well known mechanism for supporting and moving molds to and from a charging station. f

Any suitable operating mechanism may be provided to swing the frame 15, as required to move the charger 10 between a charge receiving position, as shown in Fig. 1, to a charge delivering or charging position, as shown in Fig. 2. Such ,operating mechanism may comprise a cylinder 26 having at one end an extending ear or projection 27 connected by a horizontal pivot element 28 with a standard or upstanding support 29 on lthe plate 23, or with any other convenient fixed structural part. The piston 30 that works in the cylinder 26 has its piston rod 31 connected by a horizontal pivot element 32 with an upstanding ear 33 on the adjacent end of the frame 15 and at a level above that at which the frame 15 is pivotally supported on the base or xed support 23. The cylinder 23 is provided adjacent to its opposite ends with suitable connections, such as indicated at 34, whereby pressure fluid may be admitted to and exhausted from the opposite ends of the cylinder alternately to reciprocate the piston 30 in the cylinder 26. When the piston 30 is adjacent to the pivotally supported end of the cylinder 26, as shown in Fig. 1, the piston rod will be -retracte'd and the frame 15 will have been swung upwardly'in a vertical plane so that the charger 10, which is suspended from the frame 15 will have its axis inclined. The limits of the swinging movements of the frame 15 may be adjusted in any suitable knownmanner to vary the angle of inclination from the horizontal of the longitudinal axis of the cavity 11 of the charger when the'piston 30 is at the end of its`rearward stroke and to assure that the longitudinal axis of the cavity of the charger will be horizontal A when the -piston v30 is at the end of its return or forward stroke.

The inclined position of the cavity of the charger 11 is selected with relation to the curvature of the supporting surface of a chute or conduit 35 by which the charge of glass obtained from a feeder, such as that generally indicated at F in Fig. 5, will be directed axially into the cavity 11. Theconduit or chute 35 may be of any suitableknown construction and may be formed in one or more parts, any or all of which may be provided with any suitable known adjusting and/or operating mechanism, many examples of which may be found in both the patented and the commercial art. The chute or conduit, per se, forms n'o part of the present invention, it only being essential that such chute or conduit shall be adapted to receive from an associate feeder a charge having its major axis substantially vertical and shall deliver such charge centrally into the cavity 11, of the closed charger 1 0 so that the major or longitudinal axis of the charge will coincide with the longitudinal axis of the cavity of the charger. Only the lower or delivery end portion of the chute 35 is shown in Figs. 1 and 2 but a generally similarchute 35a, to which further reference hereinafter will be made, is shown more or less diagrammatically in Fig. 5.

The cavity 11 of the charger is formed to conform generally in size and shape with the cavity of the mold that is to be charged. Likewise, the charge to be delivered to the charger preferably has been preformed with relation to the size and shape of the cavity of the charger so as to fit snugly in the latter. The feeder may be of any suitable known type of construction, preferably being similar to that which is disclosed in Patent No. 1,760,254, granted to me May 27, 1930, as assign'or to the Hartford-Empire Company.

Any suitable mechanism may be provided for opening and closing the halves of the charger at the proper times. In the particular embodiment of the invention that is illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, such mechanism comprises an air cylinder 36 mounted on the web of a yoke 37, the arms of which are turned downward and are secured at their lower ends, as at 38, to the -side members 16 of the frame 15. A piston rod 39 depends downwardly through an aperture in the web of the yoke 37 from a piston 40 in the cylinder 36. The piston rod 39 is connected at its lower end to a cross head 41, the ends of which are connected by links 42 with outstanding ears 43 on the upper portions of the halves of the charger 10. When the piston 40 is at the lower end of its stroke, as shown in Fig. 1, the halves of the charger will be kept closed. However, when the charger has been swung downwardly from the position shown in Fig. '1 to the horizontal position of Fig. 2 and a mold is at the charge receiving station below the charger, air may be admitted to the lower end of the cylinder 36 and exhausted from the upper end of such cylinder. The piston 40 then will' be forced upward in the cylinder 36, thereby swinging the halves of the charger apart and permitting the charge 12 to fall from the charger directly into the cavity of the underlying mold, as shown in Fig. 2. The cylinder 36 is provided at its opposite ends with the suitable connections, such as indicated at 44, so that air may be admitted to and exhausted therefrom at the proper times.

The operation of the specic embodiment of the invention that is shown in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, is believed to have been sufficiently pointed out in or to be obvious from the foregoing description of the several parts of that embodiment. By the use of such embodiment of the invention, a charge that conforms generally in size and shape with the cavity of the mold to be charged will be deposited in the mold cavity in the position at which it most nearly ts such cavity. Consequently, subsequent settling or compacting of the glass in the mold against the walls of the mold cavity may be effected without rupture, infolding or overlapping of the skin on any portion of the glass in the mold. The finally shaped article will be free from seams and defects which 'in a mold.

The mold 24 may be of any suitable construction and may be provided with any suitable operating and supporting mechanism. The particular mold shown is formed of cooperative sections and is adapted for use in the manufacture of a glass brick which may be formed by pressing the glass in the mold.

The modifiedform of construction shown in Fig. 4, and also included in the assembly of Fig. 5, differs from that hereinbefore described in that the charger is not swung between a charge receiving station and the mold charging station but remains at the later and receives the charge at that place. Therefore, the charger carrying frame need not be pivotally supported and mechanism for swinging such frame may be dispensed with.

In the construction shown in Fig. 4, the charger is carried by a frame 15a which has a downwardly turned supporting end portion a fixedly secured to the support 23a. The frame 15a otherwise is similar to the frame 15 of the hereinbefore described embodiment of the invention. The same reference characters therefore have been employed to indicate corresponding portions of the frames 15 and 15a.

The halves of the charger 10 of the form of construction shown in Fig. 4 are suspended from the frame 15a and are opened and closed by mechanism such as hereinbefore has been described. The charger 10 is supported by the frame 15a in a horizontal position with the flaring open end of the cavity l1 in alignment with the substantially horizontal lower end portion of a chute or conduit 35a, by which charges are to be delivered from the associate feeder to the cavity of the charger 10. The chute 35a may differ from the chute 35 of the construction of Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, only in the curvature of a portion or portions thereof.

The charger 10 is disposed directly above the charging station to which the mold 24 on the carrier 25 is brought. When the charge, indicated at 46 in Fig. 4, has been delivered to the cavity 11 of the charger 10, as shown in Fig. 4, the operating mechanism for opening the halves of the charger will be actuated in the manner hereinbefore described so that the charge may drop downward into the cavity of the mold and will be deposited in the later in the position in which it most nearly nts the mold cavity.

It is obviousA that many modifications and adaptations of the embodiments of the invention which have been'herein described may be provided without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The invention, therefore, is not .to be limited by the disclosure except as pointed charge above and in parallel relation with the cavity of the mold for which said charge is intended, and means for operating said charge receiving and retaining means to release the charge as a unit without causing any substantial change of shape thereof so that said charge may drop downward into said mold cavity.

2. Apparatus for delivering separated charges of molten glass to molds having cavities formed with a horizontal dimension of greater extent than the depth of said cavities, comprising a partible charger having a cavity open at one end and adapted to receive and support a charge of glass appropriate for the cavity of one of said molds, means for directing said charge of glass into the cavity of said charger, means for supy porting said charger above a mold charging station so that the glass charge in the chargeris supported directly above and parallel with the cavity of a mold at that station when the axial line of the charger cavity issubstantially at a right angle to the vertical axial line of the mold cavity, and means for opening the partible charger to drop the charge therefrom directly downward into the cavity 'of said mold.

3. In apparatus for delivering separated charges of molten glass to molds having cavities formed with a horizontal dimension of greater extent than the depth of said cavities, a charger comprising a longitudinally divided receptacle comprising two cooperative half sections adapted to be opened and closed by `swinging movements about an axis parallel with the longitudinal axis of the cavity of said receptacle, said receptacle being open at one end and'closed at the other, a conduit for receiving separated charges from a source of supply and along which said charges may slide, means for supporting said receptacle in position to receive a charge of glass from the delivery end of said conduit, and means for maintaining the half sections of said receptacle closed to temporarily support said charge above and parallel with the cavity of an underlying mold and for thereafter opening said sections to cause said charge to drop downward between the opened lower side edges of the sections of the charger and into said mold. f

4. The combination with a chute adapted to receive separated charges of molten glass from a feeder, of a charger, said charger comprising a receptacle formed of separable parts and supported in position to receive a charge from said chute, the glass receiving portion of the cavity of said receptacle corresponding generally in width and length with the cavity of a mold at a charging station beneath `said receptacle, and means for separating the sections of said receptacle to permit the charge to drop straight downward therefrom in a direction substantially at a right angle to the axial line lof the charger cavity into the cavity of the underlying mold.

5. Apparatus for delivering mold charges from a feeder to molds having cavities formed with a horizontal dimension of greater extent than the depths of said cavities, comprising a longitudinally partible charger having a cavity open at one end and adapted to receive and support therein a charge of glass of suitable dimensions to fit within the cavity of one of said molds, an inclined chute for receiving said charge of glass from a source of supply, a frame supporting said charger and swingable to move the charger from a charge receiving position in alignment with the delivery end of said chute to a position in which the charge within said charger is horizontally disposed and is located directly above the cavity of the mold for which the charge is intended, and means for opening the charger when it is in said second named position to drop the charge therevfrom into the cavity of the underlying mold.

6. The combination with a'chute for receiving separated charges of molten glass from a feeder, said chute having an inclined lower end portion,

a charger comprising a receptacle formed of two parts, each of which extends the full length of the receptacle said parts of the receptacle being hinged together to open and close by swinging movements about` an axis substantially parallel with the axial line of the cavity orsaid receptacle, said receptacle being open at one end and closed at its opposite end, a frame supporting said charger for swinging movements between aA charge receiving position in alignment with the delivery end of said chute and a mold charging position in which the charge of glass in said charger is supported directly above the open cavity of a mold at acharging station, the cavity of said receptacle being formed with relation to the cavity of the mold so as to support a charge of glass adapted to fit the cavity of the mold, operating means for effecting said swinging movements of the charger, and means for kopening and closing the parts of said receptacle to maintain them closed when the receptacle is in its glass receiving position andrto swing the lower side edges of the parts of the receptacle open to permit the glass charge to fall from the receptacle between said lower side edges into the cavity of the underlying mold when said receptacle is in its saidmold charging position.

'7. Apparatus for delivering charges from a feeder to the cavities of molds at a charging station,'said apparatus comprising a chute adapted to receive a separated preformed charge of glass from said feeder and to conduct said charge to a position above said charging station, a charger comprising two separable half sections cooperatively formed to provide a receptacle having a cavity adapted to receive from the chute a glass charge of suitable dimensions to t within the cavity of a mold `at the charging station, said sections being hinged together to'open and close by swinging movements about an axis substantially parallel with the axial line of the receptacle cavity, means for swinging said charger to posi tion to receive a charge from said chute and for thereafter swinging said charger downwardly to dispose the charge therein directly above and parallel with the cavity of the mold at the charging station, and pneumatic means for maintaining the sections of said charger closed' edges of the sections of the receptacle into the' cavity of the mold at the charging station when said charger has been moved from its charge receiving position to its second named' position.

8. The method of charging a mold having a cavity of greater extent in a horizontal direction than in a vertical direction, comprising the steps of obtaining from a source of supply a separated preformed charge appropriate for the mold to be charged but having its major axis substantially vertical when the charge is separated from` said source of supply, guiding said charge to a charging station for said mold and gradually turning said charge about its transverse axis during its said movement to change the direction of the major axis thereof from the vertical toward the horizontal, checking the movement of the charge at said charging station and temporarily supporting said charge so that all .portions thereof are directly above the portions of the mold cavity for which they are intended and the major axis ofthe charge is substantially horizontal and parallel with the major axis of the mold cavity, and dropping said mold charge straight downward into said mold cavity.

9. The method of charging a mold having a cavity of greater extent in a horizontal direction than in a vertical direction, comprisingthe steps of obtaining a substantially vertically disposed separated preformed charge having a length slightly less than the maximum horizontal dimension of the mold cavityl and a diameter slightly less than the Width of said mold cavity and less than the length of the charge, and delivering said charge to the mold in such manner as to turn the mold charge about its transverser 

